Learning from the Hierophant

The Hierophant V

I have nothing clever to say today. :p

I have been a very very busy Tarot lady the past few weeks. My vulgar yet wonderful, Quentin Tarantino calendar is brightly decorated with pink circles signifying my Tarot appointments. My weekends are booking up quick and evenings during the week as well. I could not be happier. It stands true, if you put the work in you get the reward. I have had the pleasure over the past few weeks to meet many new people and see some returning clients as well. It's an awesome feeling when you get to see someone you have read for before and they tell you how things you said came true, or to have them recommend you to others. 

My life would not be complete without a little scandal as well. I learned over the past few weeks not to do private readings for people one on one in their homes. It is important for anyone who is thinking about doing Tarot to always put their own safety first. I am no longer going to travel to anyone's home unless it is for a party. It would be nice someday to have a room somewhere in the city which is used exclusively for reading in a public setting. Until I win big on those lottery tickets, I don't buy, the private readings will be coming to me. This little tangent rings true with the card that we are going to explore today, the Hierophant or as some call him , the High Priest or Pope. 

This card often comes up when you need a little more conformity in your life. Sometimes it will indicate someone who longs for the traditions of their past or is looking to start new traditions in their future. The card features a Pope sitting high above two priests kneeled before him. He is adorned in a red robe and wears a golden triple crown (not to be confused with glorious triple crown vodka). His arm is outstretched giving a blessing. Social approval, marriage and public education are all ruled by this card. Side thought- Maybe if marriage was ruled by the saucy Lovers or even the lustful Devil the divorce rate would be a tad lower... 

This card can also represent someone or yourself who is a non-conformist. Someone who goes against the grain. Depending on where the card sits in the spread and the other cards around it, it can mean that you may find yourself in a non-traditional mindset or having unconventional ways of going about things. I find that it can mean a little need of structure or perhaps for you provide structure for others. Do you see yourself as the Pope sitting and giving orders? If you do, maybe you will be promoted to a leadership position. Do you see yourself as one of the priests? Maybe you are destined to continue to follow orders and might be better off to not push the boundaries on traditions. As much as it pains me to say it and prepare your eyes for some rolling because I am going to say it: Authority is there for a reason and sometimes its not worth the constant fight against it. Urggh I officially feel like a droid for "the man". It does apply true in some situations though, whether we wish to acknowledge that or not. 

Symbolically his raised right hand represents spiritual blessings and the keys between the two priests are all about unlocking the doors to your next step. Your big change. The triple cross on his staff is a Roman Catholic symbol used to represent someone who embodies the Holy Trinity- Father, Son, Holy Spirit. The Hierophant is the fifth card in the Major Arcana. The number five is a turning point number. It symbolizes changes. Its that halfway point or that point where you are about to give up but keep going. In relation to this card you could ask yourself questions about your religion, your workplace, your parents, your marriage etc. basically any institution in which you belong to or are apart of. 

I always found it interesting that the Hierophant is related to the High Priestess. The High Priestess as we learned, is all about esoteric mystery where the High Priest is all about knowledge of traditions and authority. They are very different but also very much alike. 

Meditating on The Hierophant

Spend some time thinking about the many different traditions in your life. Are you a traditional person? Think about a tradition from your childhood. Was it a Christmas memory such as putting the star on the tree? Or maybe something you did for your birthday? It could even be a tradition you hold now like meeting your friends for coffee or going on a date night. Whatever it is, think about this: Why do you keep it going? What value does it bring to your life? What would happen if you stopped or when it did stop? Think about all the feelings this event or events give you. Write down your reactions and feelings. 

Now lets think about the future. Is there is any tradition that you would like to start? It could be anything from keeping a Book of Shadows or journal. It could be to practice more meditation or ritual in your life or something more mundane. Make goals for yourself and see how bringing change in your life will change things, hopefully for the better. 

Now lets do another separate exercise keeping this card in mind. (I know I am totally not doing our usual wordy meditation, but I thought I would mix it up a little today). Have you ever found yourself standing in line for what feels like eternity, like you are pretty sure you have aged while waiting? How many of us fantasize about pushing everyone out of the way to get to the front, but how many of us would actually do it? This is how the Hierophant is represented in our modern day society. Waiting in line not causing a scene and just accepting our fate is in a way conforming to society. How does conforming help our day to day lives? (It saves us from killing each other at the grocery store for starters...)  

How many of us have had a pointless argument with our parents or spouse (when we know they are right but we still want to be a stubborn dick)? I think we would all have our little blogger hands raised to that question. Does questioning authority- like fighting with our parents/spouse really get you anywhere? How does authority make you feel? Does it make sense to constantly question? I am always on the fence with this. I think that we do need to question things, actually I think we absolutely should question, but do we need to question everything? What happens when we decide to go against the grain? What happens if we go with it? 

So many things to ponder dear readers. Keep the Hierophant in mind this week when you are waiting in line or thinking of traditions past or new ones you want to start. 

Next up we will get into the favourite card of many, The Lovers, but is everything what is seems? Ohh the mystery!